Kamehameha sophomore Kanani Araki had one of those days where everything looked easy, like hitting the side of a barn.
She outpaced everyone, boys included, at the BIIF air riflery championships, winning her first title and leading the charge toward a team crown as well.
Kamehameha’s top four shooters had the highest average scores, which led to the school’s first BIIF team championship. No surprise, Araki was out in front with a 270 average.
On Saturday, Araki finished with a 640.1 total, better than last year’s HHSAA state championship score of 635.5, set by Island Pacific Academy’s Alyssa Okimoto.
Two of her teammates trailed in a fight for second. McKenna Hewitt was the runner-up at 614.4, and Nahulu Carvalho was third at 611.9.
Then the Waiakea five followed in descending order: Kiani Aburamen, 606.7; Jhordyn Muranaka-Ozeki, 606.5; Megan Nakamoto, 606.3; Tori Hironaga, 598.3; Madison Carvalho, 591.4.
Kamehameha’s Lehua Waianuhea was ninth at 512.0 at Waiakea’s gym, where good eyesight, steady hands, and steely composure were tested all day long.
“It was great,” Araki said. “Waiakea and Kamehameha have had a little bit of a rivalry. Both are nicknamed the Warriors and put up a good fight. We all had our ups and downs.
“We all celebrated with each other. We were thanking each other for a good season. Everyone congratulated me when I won, all the coaches from other schools and the boys and girls. It was good sportsmanship.”
Araki entered her first BIIF championship with the expected butterflies. But youth is a good medicine.
“I was a bit nervous, but I was also excited. I’m only a sophomore,” she said. “The day of a shoot and the night before I don’t eat sweets or caffeine. I don’t want to get too jittery. I tell myself to think it’s more like a practice.
“I focus on having good hand-eye coordination. I rely on both. If you don’t match up the target with your gun or move your gun, the shot will be off.”
Kamehameha’s Araki, Hewitt, Beyonce Corpuz, who was 13th at 503.0, and Waianuhea qualified for states, which will be held Tuesday on Oahu.
The other qualifiers are Waiakea’s Aburamen, Muranaka-Ozeki, Carvalho, and Nakamoto, and Hilo’s Haylee Nishijima, who was 12th at 507.0.
Araki has a good shot to put down a Kamehameha stamp at states. The only BIIF shooter to win a state title was Waiakea’s Kellie Iwasaki in 2011.
“I’m really excited and nervous,” Araki said. “My mentality is to think of nothing. I don’t want any roaming thoughts, where you can’t focus on the target.”
But if Araki gets hot, the target becomes as big as the side of a barn.
